New company tries to expand filmmaking in the Adirondacks

September 22, 2012

LAKE PLACID - A new local production and publishing house is producing a short film aimed at showcasing the resources available for filmmakers from the Adirondacks and beyond.

Timothy Brearton of Adirondack Mogul said "The Deal," a film about a debt-ridden working man who is offered a "dubious deal" by a stranger, will show budding young filmmakers what his company can do to help get their projects off the ground. He said he hopes the film will also convince filmmakers from outside the region to bring their productions here.

Brearton said Adirondack Mogul, which was founded in January, can provide filmmakers with crews, caterers and "any other resources they may need."

Article Photos

Actors Michael Fisher, right, and John Kiedaisch star in “The Deal,” a short film produced by Adirondack Mogul.(Photo courtesy of Adirondack Mogul)

Actor John Kiedaisch plays a stranger who makes a down-on-his-luck working man a mysterious offer in “The Deal.”(Photo courtesy of Adirondack Mogul)

"We've all - Dave Press, myself, Sunny Rozakis - assisted productions that have come into the area on our own," Brearton said. "Dave worked with 'Dancehall' when it was here. I've helped out with 'Begin the Beguine,' which just shot down in Blue Mountain Lake.

"We just formed this company this year, and the idea is to just consolidate our resources and provide something substantial and attractive to regional productions."

Brearton said many filmmakers who travel to the Adirondacks rack up big expenses by flying in people to do jobs that local workers can be hired for.

"They have a portable crew," he said. "'Dancehall' was flying people in from Los Angeles just to build sets. We have carpenters. You can throw a rock and hit a carpenter in the Adirondacks."

"The Deal" is based on a short story Brearton wrote several years ago. He described the short film as a "trial run" to see what could be produced with resources available in the Adirondacks.

Brearton said he believes the Adirondack Park is becoming more popular among filmmakers. He noted that producers of "The Place Beyond the Pines," a new movie that includes scenes shot on a Vermontville farm field owned by Barbara Rottier, came to the Adirondacks instead of moving to a place like Colorado. The movie, starring Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper, premiered earlier this month at the Toronto Film Festival.

"Visually, the Adirondacks has just a lot of stunning vistas, just a lot to offer," Brearton said. "Plus there's just a lot of friendly people that are happy to accommodate. It's pretty simple: There's not a lot of permits, there's not a lot of red tape. Usually it's just maybe a phone call to the town supervisor to say, 'Hey, can we set out a couple of orange cones? We'd like to let you know we're looking to shoot over in such and such neighborhood.' It's just a real laid-back kind of way of going about it.

To wrap up production on "The Deal," Brearton and Adirondack Mogul need a little more money. He said people who want to support the project can do so by donating at www.indiegogo.com/The-Deal. Their goal is $3,000 within the next month.